The Chill
by baileybijoux
Summary: "Effie, you are the most insufferable person I have ever known, and I mean ever known, but somehow, you make me so happy." Post-Mockingjay. Pure, unadulterated Hayffie fluff.


A/N: So, another Hayffie fic! For some reason, I can't seem to write anything angsty or sad or anything like that about them, even though the only reason I ship them is general tragedy of their potential relationship. I just want everything to be happy and butterflies, apparently :)

So read on and enjoy!

* * *

It was cold outside, that she knew. When Effie had invited the Everdeens over for tea that night, just Katniss and her mother now, she felt the blustery wind barge in through the door when she ushered the two women in. It was almost Christmas, just three days away now, and she had allowed Haymitch to go out for drinks with Peeta. She could hardly tolerate his drinking anymore, and it was easier to deal with if he did it outside of their home.

"Thank you for having us over, Effie," Mrs. Everdeen said, hanging her brown coat made up of some sort of pelt up on the coatrack. She noticed me eyeing it, and smiled.

"Katniss made it for me, shot a deer a couple months ago," she explained as I walked them towards the small table in the kitchen.

Her daughter sighed. "Mom, it was just for your birthday."

Her mother smiled again, pressing her lips against her the back of her daughter's head. They had grown so much closer since Primrose had died. It broke Effie's heart every time she heard Katniss mention her and then her mother's face would grow so sad, such a grim look on her face. Effie hoped she would never have to experience what either of them had gone through. Oh, if her sister died anytime soon, she would be absolutely devastated. They hadn't seen each other in years now, since before the rebellion, before the last Quarter Quell. She missed her more than anything.

She poured their tea into her little dainty teacups that her sister had sent to her, and joined the other women at the table. Ever since she had made the decision to come to District 12, there was a little bit of regret in her heart. She couldn't go back home now, because all of her friends, even a good part of her family, had supported the Capitol during the rebellion. It had been just over two years since the end of it, and when Haymitch decided he would go back to his home, just because of Katniss and of Peeta, she wanted to go with him.

Effie loved him. She really did. They had seen so much, they understood everything about each other now, he had saved her life. There was no way she could leave that behind.

"Effie? You there?" Katniss said, leaning in towards her face. She had been daydreaming, elbows propped up on the table, teacup pressed against her bottom lip.

Taking her first sip, she waved her hand dismissively. "Sorry, I was just thinking," she murmured, and she shared a knowing look with Mrs. Everdeen.

The rest of the night was spent chatting, and at one point Effie had caught Katniss taking a swig of a silver flask that had been given to her by Haymitch. She watched, with her eyebrow cocked, as Katniss slowly put it back into her pocket. The girl murmured something about how she wanted to feel better, and Effie just retorted with her usual statement: "You had better watch yourself, you're turning into Haymitch."

Because she was. There was so much sadness inside of that girl, and Effie couldn't help but watch her slow, downward spiral into alcoholism. It broke her heart. Sometimes, she could hear her and Peeta argue if she kept the window open in the kitchen. It faced their house, and the close proximity unnerved her sometimes. She hated hearing them fight. Peeta loved her so much, Effie could tell, and she still wasn't sure if Katniss felt the same way.

"So, Effie, any plans for a wedding of your own?" Mrs. Everdeen asked, a distinct lilt to her voice that was unique to this part of the District.

She shook her head vehemently. "No, no, we're perfectly happy the way we are now. I never saw myself getting married either, and thankfully Haymitch respects that."

As it was nearing midnight, Effie knew the boys would be returning because that's when the bar closed. As Katniss and her mother said goodbye, she left the front door unlocked and the porch light on for Haymitch. God forbid he couldn't navigate himself to the door without a light on.

Crawling into bed not soon after, she wrapped her arms around her legs in a protective manner with one arm, the other draped across her stomach. Just as she was about to fall into a deep sleep, the telltale sounds of a man's feet crunching down the path to their home in the snow, a muffled groan, and a very distinct thump.

Effie jumped out of bed, scrambled into a pair of slippers, and ran down the stairs. She attempted to tread lightly on the snow, but it had partly melted anyways and her slippers were already soaked before she had gotten halfway to the collapsed mass of person. Cursing to herself, she lodged a very well-placed kick against the blonde man when she reached him.

"Haymitch! What on earth are you doing? You will freeze to death out here, you do know that, I hope?" She screeched, tugging on his arm to get him to move. He merely mumbled something incoherently before moving his legs underneath him. He attempted to stand.

It took them three times to get him propped up against Effie enough to where she had decent leverage. He dragged his feet along the slush that covered the pathway, and getting him up the stairs was even a more difficult task. She couldn't over-exert herself, that's what Mrs. Everdeen had told her today...

As she laid him down on their bed, and pulled off his boots, she continued to berate him. "Haymitch Abernathy, if you ever make me do this again, you will never hear the end of it!"

"Already doin' that, princess," he mumbled, and she was surprised she could even tell what he had said.

He began to roll over, away from her screeches, she assumed, so she didn't even bother hesitating to yank him back around to face her.

"What happened to Peeta? I thought he was supposed to bring you home," she stated, pulling him up to a sitting position so she could unbutton his shirt.

He let out a belch and Effie lightly slapped his unshaven cheek. "He was worse off than I was, Eff, carried him up...to his house," he managed, grimacing from her slap.

She was sure Katniss was doing the exact same thing next door. Peeta was hardly ever inebriated, and with the both of them like that, she had hoped they were having a field day in their bedroom. It was better than what she had to do right now.

Effie sighed once she had tossed his shirt to the floor, pushing him back down onto his back. She perched herself on the edge of the bed, her hand caressing the spot on his face that she had hit. "Haymitch, you really can't do this anymore. Not like this, anyways."

His eyes opened for the first time since he had come home. "Why? You never cared about it before," he said, placing his hand on her thigh comfortingly.

"The situation we're in now...it's not good for any of us," she explained, choosing her words carefully. It was better to slowly release news than to just blurt it out to his face. She learned this very early on in their relationship.

"Nothing's changed, Eff. Just the weather's gotten worse, that's all," he pointed out.

She grabbed his hand with her own, still resting on her thigh, and looked straight ahead at the window. "I'm being serious, darling," she said after several moments of staring out the window. She turned, and her eyes immediately found his, and she told him what she had learned that day.

"You being straight with me?" He slurred, mostly out of shock than drunkenness.

She nodded. "We're due in July."

He pulled her against her just as she said this, and her head rested just underneath his. Her feet snaked around to his, hoping they would warm them after her excursion.

"I know...I know I said we couldn't, because my shot wouldn't wear off for a few more years, but I guess it was earlier than I previously had thought," she explained, uneasy of what he would exactly feel about this.

He scoffed. "Well, obviously."

She began to sit up, saying, "If you aren't happy about this, I can just go and get-"

He reached out for her wrist, gripping it tightly. "Effie, you are the most insufferable person I have ever known, and I mean _ever _known, but somehow, you make me so happy. And this makes me happy. I'm a little shocked, yeah, but this is a good thing. It'll be good for us. Okay?"

Effie grinned, pressing a chaste kiss against his lips. "So everything will be all right?"

"Of course it will be, princess. Can't have it any other way."

She believed him, for some reason.

She also really hoped he would remember this conversation in the morning.

* * *

A/N: I just like it when everything is lovely and nothing hurts, okay? Also, I'm planning to elaborate on Effie's sister in a future fic, so that will probably be the next thing you see from me.

Please review if you can!

Bailey xx


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